Thought processes and conversations started under the tilted cap of Tropicana Field. Someday everyone will know the Rays play in St. Petersburg, Florida, not TAMPA, or the fictitious city of TAMPA BAY.

No more “Red” days

Matt Slocum / AP

DISCLAIMER:

Take today’s blog with a grain of salt. It is a sarcastic subject matter to me right now, but I am not trying to demoralize or discredit the actions of Major League Baseball in honoring the veterans who have served our country with their blood,sweat and for some, their lives. I served in a National Guard unit based out of Kuwait City in 1991 and take my time serving this country with extreme honor and pride.

I am not great at sarcasm or comedy, so please do not beat me with objects that have nails, barbs or shiny objects attached to them. Red is a great color to symbolize courage and sacrifice. And for that I understand and commend MLB for using this color in their cap selection in 2009.

I have to tell you, starting today, I am going to start a grass-roots, special session, congressional investigation with full disclosure and penalties to the poor sap that approved the idea of RED caps to celebrate the holidays both this past weekend and during the Memorial Day ( May 25, 2009) games in baseball. It is with the full vocal backing of the fan bases of the Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays that I try and make some logical sense to the unusual adherence of the Red color to these two teams cap collections during those holidays.

I am hoping to conclude and have all the data analyzed and processed by the next “Red Cap” day, September 7, 2009 when again the teams of the MLB will adorn their heads with these red caps.

Yes, do not be afraid, but be aware that this color of the Bull, this primary color selection has led several clubs to end this past weekend with either 0-4 records like the Rays and Jays, or to a 1-3 mark like four members of the Senior circuit. That is right, the Colorado Rockies, New York Mets, Atlanta Braves and the Chicago Cubs all have been tossed towards the dark winless side by the demon color.

It is not like the “Rays of light” or the nasty aggressive mannerisms of the Blue Jay could keep these losing feeling out of the grasp of their collective ball teams because of the regal and royal color selection. Such a color might be perfect for Royal coronations and stop signs, but it is as foreign as fine cognac to the boys in the dugouts of these two squads. How amazing it is and probably will merit a Nobel Prize for sports for me if I can find the correlation of the odd color’s demonic powers over the usually cool hued and color schemes of these 6 teams.

Sharon Ellman / AP

Of course only one of these teams is from outside the United States borders, and their finding might be found to be a non-issue since they do not observe the same holidays as our country. But the fact that a majority of their roster is consisting of a smattering of US citizens, it is a issue of national importance that we find a cause of this losing epidemic and transform some logic to seek a victorious release of wins come this Labor Day. So with the losing transformation creeping over the US border into Toronto, it is imperative that we find a cure for the losing and find it fast to secure our borders from this red menace.

The color red has been good to some of those who usually wear this passionate color for their uniforms. The World Champion Philadelphia Phillies went 0-1 before finally getting on board this past weekend to 3-0 and send the Mets into the cauldron with the five other teams to go teams. The Phillies, who always wear a smattering of red on their jerseys took the step as an alternative cap selection and did not heed the evil within the color scheme.

To really put an large exclamation point on all of this is to go into the statistics and see just how far these red caps took the two team into the depths of despair. The Rays during their first encounter with the red caps on May 25th were leading their contest against the Cleveland Indians 10-0 before the Indians, who have red piping and red alternative uniforms came back and smacked the poor Rays with their worst comeback in team history.

The Rays ended up losing that game 11-10 in the bottom of the ninth inning on a walk-off. Not the kind of start you want with a new cap color selection. But the best exclamation that this red scheme is counter-productive and must be stopped might be in this weekends three game series against the Texas Rangers. Here is a team that mostly sports a blue, gray and white uniform base with some red background colors in their jerseys.

Matt Slocum / AP

They do not adhere to the basic red motif, but their alternative uniform is a red jersey that is accented by the MLB-ordained cap. So this past weekend they trampled onto the field with their red jerseys full pressed and ready for action. The results was that the red hued Rangers outscored the Rays 20-7 in the series and kept the Rays in check the entire 3-game series.

The Rays, who were the MLB leaders in runs coming into the series fell from the top spot for the first time in months and now gave that honor to the New York Yankees, who went a mysterious 4-0 on these dates. Could the Bronx squad have sold their soul to the red, or could there be another logical answer. The Rays also fell from their other top spot in the majors, On-Base Percentage also giving way to the crew out of the Bronx.

Could this red revolution be more centered into the top tiers of the league, or just a figment of our subconscious. Over the next few months I will dive deep and long into data and statistics looking for the ultimate cure for the summertime reds caused by this 4 game deceleration by the Jays and Rays. The cure might be as simple as putting a blue swatch of material into the inner headband of the red caps to give the team some superstition protection.

But it also might just be a case of the abnormal color playing weird and intense mind games with the two blue-hued teams. Toronto does have a small piping and edge of red in their logo and uniforms, and their home country does have a prominent red color to their flag. But what makes this Canadian team fall to the vices of this red epidemic.

It might be the last time in 2009 that we see those dreaded caps, but what will be in store for 2010? Why not go back to the individual stars and stripes logos the teams used in 2008 again. They are classic and better representation of the spirit and the contributions of the veterans of this great land. Red is the color of passion and in ancient Rome if a general came home victorious he was doused in red as a show of victory and power. The Rangers used their show of red to dominate, like a Roman general and put the Rays into a state of defeat in all three contests.

The red caps are not being used with evil intentions, but the finally decision is an individual one. Can the red horde be pushed back into the darkness and away from the psyches of the Rays and Jays in time to bring about a victory in the last day of the red cap for 2009. We still have a few months to find plausible and new methods to attack the red at its core and bring victory back to the blue-hued ones. The Mets, Rockies Braves and Cubs can also learn from this research to better develop a method of attack and perseverance against the red-hued psychological night mare.

I know that the marketing of the red cap is to increase and to fluctuate the common man with a multitude of MLB cap selections. But for these six teams, the red cap has been a thing of despair and grief instead of a triumph and glorious moment. But in all battles, even on the fields of play, there can be only one winner. Hopefully in the next engagement, the Rays and Jays can throw those caps to the air after the game in victory, not defeat.

I think the team should be able to choose red or blue hats depending and what would look better. Like the O’s Rays shouldn’t have to be forced to wear red hast, it doesn’t look good!
Check out Jews On First my dad is furious about the non-selection of Ian Kinsler.
Jordanhttp://upin36011cc.mlblogs.com

I am so glad you brought that up Pittsburgh Peas.
I loved the July 4th patch that MLB put on the jerseys for their support for the cure for ALS.
The “4 ALS” patches were classy and looked great over the heart side of the uniform like a workman’s patch on his uniform.
Pittsburgh came out pretty good going 2-2 in the Red cap days, but they did lose their last 2 games.
Better days are ahead of us wearing our usual headgear.
I am expecting a few Red Sox, Reds and maybe a few Cardinals fans that love their red uniforms to chime in today.

Jordan,
Maddon talked about something to this effect that the numbers kept a few guys who could of, should of had better consideration.
Josh Hamilton was going to play in the game to honor the fans voting, but if he was not ready, you know MLB would have tossed either Kevin Millwood or Ian Kinsler onto the roster..hopefully.
Things can happen between today and next Tuesday. Hopefully they do not involve an injury, but that Kinsler and a few of the guys who deserve shots get them by that date.

I tuned in to see Johan and the Mets take on Philly this weekend. Watching Johan in a light gray jersey and bright red cap just looked odd. I’m not sure I could ever really like it although I admire MLB’s intentions behind the idea.Ashhttp://ashleymarshall.mlblogs.com

Ash,
That is one of the reason I put the disclaimer at the top.
As a vet, I could have taken the blog in the wrong vein, but I am trying to throw out some bad humor for a change.
The worst uniform pairing with the red cap had to be the K C Royals with their baby blue uniforms and that red cap.
You could have seen them from space wearing those caps.

Now see – we do wear red hats and we didn’t so so well this weekend so sorry – but you can’t blame the loses on the hats! And I know I’m in the minority – but I think it is a small price to pay (seeing our teams wear the stars & stripes hat) compared to what our returning vets go through. And Rays – thank you for what you did for our country. It is greatly appreciated! God Bless!

Julia,
i am the last person who would throw out any aspect of disrespect, but I wanted to try a simple test of my humor and see how it went south, or if it was receive well.
I am going to call it a toss-up right now with more votes heading to the abyss than the top of the mountain.
You do not have to thank me, I along with most of the men in my family’s past have fought without thought or concern for our own welfare.
The blog was meant as a tongue-in-cheek posting, but like some great comedians have stated, “You never know when you bomb until you can hear the crickets singing in the parking lot.”

I enjoyed your post, Renegade. You can use humor here anytime and I’ll be happy. For me, not liking the red caps has nothing to do with disrespecting our military. It’s a simple matter of finding a patriotic symbol (like the flag) that all teams can wear on their caps without making every player look like a member of the Phillies or Angels!

When my parents were kids red was associated with Communism, which is about as anti-American as you can get. So I do find the choice of red to symbolize patriotism to be kind of odd. I thought your musings on the red caps was funny and thoughtful, I didn’t find it to be disrespectful in the least.-Erinhttp://plunking-gomez.mlblogs.comm

Jane,
I am glad someone else gets it besides me.
I have been told a few times my humor can be only understood by me, myself and I, and we all three do not agree on it. lol
Seriously, I just want the same a uniform thing like the flag patch on the side of the caps, but that doesn’t bring in more revenue.
Sometimes I think that things are done for financial reasons, but if they were done in 2008, no problem.
Today, well we are in a economy that is starving for work and money, so the caps for sale might be a win-lose situation.

Erin,
Thank you.
My childhood had the “duck and cover drills in Elementary School.
For people too young to know about it, they were drills to be performed in case of a nuclear attack from Cuba.
With Florida not more than 90 miles from the tip of Cuba when the Russians decided to put a few Missles on the island, it was a big thing.
And do you know what gave the Russians up? Soccer fields. Cubans do not play soccer normally. That got the CIA into doing a more in-depth look at the people in that region.

payoff pitch,
I always look at my humor as I understand it, hopefully others will too.
It is not like I hate the idea, but going 0-4 during a 6-game road trip, you got to find a solution.
By the “PHI” in your title, I take it you are a Phillie fan.
If RED is your uniform base color, that is totally okay. But in our normal setting, red is not on our uniforms unless a player get a cut and bleeds on it.

The bottom line is, for some teams, the red caps just don’t look right! I’m behind you (and our troops/vets). I will collect donations if you like. So far I have $4.35 ;-)
–Jeffhttp://redstatebluestate.mlblogs.com/

I was chatting with someone who works upstairs with the Rays today on the phone and said we might think about a small bonfire or portable incinerator after Labor Day for the Red caps.
Of course this will not happen, but it was funny to hear it from someone else.
Jeff, if I took donations from the team, we might be able to buy a minor league squad!

The Phils’ caps are normally red, so I’m not really bothered by the color. I think the idea of honoring the troops is great, but the cynical side of me sees it as a way for MLB to make more money off the sale of new caps – a patch or patriotic uniform for the occasion would not generate additional revenue! ;-) Bottom line, baseball is a business, and I doubt MLB would do something out of the goodness of their heart without expecting some sort of monetary return.
SueRants, Raves, and Random Thoughts

Sue,
You are right.
MLB is a business even if we would rather they love the fans and not the green stuff hanging out of our wallets as much.
I would like to think they want me in my seat, even if I do get a discount for having Season Tickets for 12 years.
But you know if I left in 2010, my seat would be sold before they even took the black nameplate off the back of my seat.
That is what businessmen do.

I like the incinerator idea. Perhaps we can burn the box scores of the Texas series too?
The MLB seem to come up with some wild ideas to make money. I guess that is what they are paid to do. The Canada Day jerseys for the Jays were not a great hit up here, and the red caps made some teams look like a fashion faux pas.
Canuck

Canuck,
I love the fashion faux pas comment.
Do not say it too loud or Lagerfeld or Gucci might have to be commissioned to do the 2010 jersey.
Or maybe resident MLB hottie Aylssa Milano could design a jersey for one of the west coast teams…………just a thought.
We have a trash incinerator in Pinellas couty about a mile from one of the proposed stadium sites. Actually, the incinerator is sitting in the one spot I truly thought they would build the stadium in the first place……..It was a swamp pit for mudding when I was a kid.

Well, I have to say, I fully support our Veterans 100%; and, I think it is commendable that Major League Baseball is honoring our vets during the Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day Holidays … But, in my view, a totally “red” cap does not seem like the best color for this tribute !!! … I would just prefer a patch of the American flag, and, or, some other patches in honor of the different branches of our military placed on the players uniforms !!! … But, if it is just a special baseball cap that MLB wants to market, then I would suggest the following design: An all white baseball cap; with a blue rim; red lettering of the team’s logo on front of the cap; and, a patch of the American flag on the back of the cap [note: I think the American flag should always be part of all baseball caps during the year; the Canadian flag on the Toronto Blue Jays caps] !!! … Also, I like the “4 ALS” patches on the front of the players uniform — these should stay the same !!!
.
Excellent thought provoking post !!!
.
Take care, Rays Renegade !!!
— Jimmy 27NYY Curran, “BY&L”
— http://baseballtheyankeesandlife.mlblogs.com/

Jimmy,
I like that uniform idea a lot.
I was thinking the other day why not let everyone in baseball maybe wear those camo uniforms for the holiday games.
You know urban camo and jungle camo can be worn by the opposite teams duirng the season then after Labor Day have the players sign them and auction them off for DAV, VFW, and even American Legion centers all over the country.
You know this idea will onbly go as far as people let it, so let’s talk about it!

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